


Separation Anxiety

by TheConsultingDemon



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Five Stages of Grief, Fluff and Angst, Just Friends, M/M, Separation Anxiety
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-20
Updated: 2015-03-03
Packaged: 2018-03-08 10:35:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3206099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheConsultingDemon/pseuds/TheConsultingDemon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Link goes on vacation and leaves Rhett at the office. For two weeks.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Link Leaves

**Author's Note:**

> [Insert Hedging]  
> This story is made up, so it never happened as far as I know.  
> Also this isn't set in any particular times except between GMM seasons .

Rhett sat at his desk, holding up his head with one hand and mindlessly watching Link stand in front of him waving his hands and arms around. He had tuned him out with his own thoughts but after so much time he could tell what his friend was saying just by his body language.

Rhett knew this day was coming though he tried not to think about it. He thought maybe if he didn't bring it up, Link would forget about it. Or maybe if he didn't think about it then in some sort of connected hive mind Link wouldn't either. He knew realistically neither would work but it didn't hurt to try. Of course he was right and they didn't work because here they were, and Link remembered. Link's vacation. Link's _two week_ vacation. 

It wasn't that he thought Link didn't deserve it; Hell the guy deserved a month’s vacation. Link was the hardest working guy he'd ever met. He'd always find the most efficient and perfect way to do everything. Everyone knew he deserved the break but...two weeks? Good God the last time they spent two weeks away from each other was when they had summer vacations. If even then. Since the first grade they've been side by side in some way. Even if they weren't working they'd see each other at least once a week.

"Rhett. Are you listening?"

Rhett snapped back into focus on his friend, wondering how long his eyes had drifted off to the floor.

"Uh-yeah man."

Link raised an eyebrow. "You gonna be alright?"

"Yeah!" Rhett stood. "I'll be fine, don't worry. Go enjoy your vacation."

Link smiled. "Thanks" he held out his hand and Rhett took it into a firm shake. "Good luck."

"You too." Rhett returned the smile and walked with his friend to the door where the car waited just outside. 

Rhett leaned on the door frame as he watched the smaller man climb into the driver’s seat. Link pointed to Rhett through the open passenger window once he was situated. "Remember what I told you."

Rhett tapped his head with two fingers. "It's all up here."

"Alright...see ya in two weeks."

Rhett gave a salute and Link returned it as he drove off.

Rhett assumed Link was referring to earlier when he was waving his arms about, in which case he had no idea what he was supposed to remember. All he knew is that he was going to be fine. It's not like he depended on Link to do everything for him. And they weren't shooting GMM for a few more weeks so he didn't have to worry about doing that alone. He remembered the last time he did that, it was so awkward and nerve racking. It was all so unbalanced and wrong. Even better he wouldn't have to worry about finding someone to fill in for Link. It's not easy to find someone suitable for the job that can bend to the schedule and is guaranteed not to slip up and say something inappropriate. 

He had nothing to worry about. What could be so important anyways?


	2. Silence

Rhett woke up to the sound of Locke and Shepard shouting in the kitchen. Something about the other having more berries on their waffles. He made a groaning sound from his throat before stretching and crawling out of bed. He shuffled his way to the kitchen and kissed Jessie good morning, smiling at the collective "ewww" coming from his sons.

"You're up a bit late."

Rhett glanced at the clock.

"Fifteen minutes never hurt nobody."

Jessie smiled and rolled her eyes.

"Just because Link isn't picking you up doesn't mean you get to be late."

"It does a little bit." He smiled again, rustling the boys hair and returning to the bedroom to get dressed.

He emerged from the room almost half an hour later, flipping his keys in his hand.

"Alright, I'm off baby." He kissed his wife again and headed out the door. But not before calling "bye boys!" over his shoulder and getting a bye back in an attempted unison.

Rhett folded his long body into the small car and started the engine. He sat for a moment, suddenly questioning if he knew the way to the office.

Eventually he made it there smoother than he thought he would. He said good morning to everyone he passed on the way to his and Link's work room. He flipped the light on to the empty room and plopped down into his chair. The room was quiet, the only sound being the faint clicking of keyboards in another room and voices on the other side of the wall. Rhett put his feet up on the desk and basked in the lack of being fussed at by Link for it.The subtle hum of silence was all Rhett needed to drift into a peaceful state, somewhere between awake and asleep. It was a sound he hadn't heard in a long time and hadn't realized he missed it. It was soothing, assuring him that he was the only one there and he could enjoy himself and relax. 

Maybe Link going away for a while could be nice. A few days without his constant quick-witted, smart-Alec remarks could only do good.

"Rhett?" 

Rhett's eyes opened with a raised eyebrow inquiring the man in the doorway to continue.

"Can we get your opinion on something?"

Rhett glanced at the clock on his desk since he had no idea how long he had been like that. Two hours. Looks like he fell asleep.

"Yeah sure thing." He followed the man to the editors room, thinking about how Link would've never let him sleep for two hours when they has more important things to do. But he snapped out of it when they asked him to pick between two shots for a video. They explained that they had narrowed it down to the two, the differences and how well it'd fit with the rest of the video. Normally this is when Rhett would hand it over to Link, who was naturally better at nitpicking the differences between things and finding the perfect solution, with some help from Rhett if course.

They all spent nearly an hour nitpicking at it and telling each other why the other is better and why the previously chosen one was a bad idea. Eventually Rhett chose and they all chimed in agreement as if the answer was clear all along. 

There were a few "thanks boss" thrown around before Rhett watched the clip one more time and straightened his back from being hunched over the desk.

"Let's hope Link will like it too."

Everyone in the room chuckled. They all knew once Link saw it he'd have a hundred things to say about the whole thing. Which was fine, it was when Link didn't say anything was when you had to worry.


	3. Denial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rhett is in denial of Link's absence until reality hits him fairly hard.

Day 3

 

Just as the sun was rising Rhett sat on his porch with the tips of his fingers gently touching his hair as he strained to see what his was doing in the camera of his phone. He had woken up a few hours early for some reason so he decided he'd try out his new hair gel since he had the time. Well that turned into a disaster. Whatever was in that gel hated Rhett's hair. It made his hair dry and prickly like hay and he couldn't get his comb to go through smoothly even once. So he took another shower and tried again with what he'd been using. But he was still convinced some of the other stuff was still stuck in his hair.

Soon enough he gave up messing with his hair and dropped his hands between his legs. He stayed like that for a while, occasionally checking his phone for the time or a text. He was craning his neck to look down the road, presumably searching for a car, when Jessie stepped out onto the porch in a robe with her arms folded in front of her. 

"Honey..?"

"He should be here by now.." Rhett mumbled, glancing at the time on his phone again.

"He..? ....honey are you waiting for Link?"

The tall man only responded by looking at her over his shoulder.

"Link is still on vacation dear.."

Rhett's face fell, then contorted into confusion. He stood, scratching at the hair on the back of his neck.

"Maybe he overslept.." He mumbled to himself as he walked to his car. "Or he probably didn't have enough gas to pick me up so he went straight to the studio.." 

Jessie stayed on the porch and watched her husband drive off, suddenly worried.

\---                                                                ---                                                                                 ---

Once Rhett arrived at the building he went straight to his and Link's work room.

"Hey man why didn't you pick me up? Or at least let me know-" he spoke as he tossed his jacket onto his chair and before he noticed he was the only one in the room. He face twisted into confusion again though this time it looked more like it was to cover something else.

He left the room and found Jason.

"Hey, Jason, is Link here?"

Jason raised an eyebrow in a questioning look before he turned to look at everyone else in the room. His eyes flicked back to Rhett but he didn't turn to face him.

"No..?"

"Well where is he?"

Jason's eyes widened as he scanned the room again. Everyone had the same expression of shock and confusion.

"He's on vacation Rhett.." 

Rhett started to rub the back of his neck. "Funny, that's what Jessie said.." He managed a fake laugh.

"You know he's on vacation right?"

"Ye-yeah, sure." Rhett's eyes were squeezed shut and he was rubbing his neck harder.

"For..two weeks..?"

The words made both of Rhett's hands drag up his face and grip into his hair. He sunk to the floor until his thighs were just inches from his chest and he was balancing on the balls of his feet with his elbows dug into his knees. His eyes were closed tighter and his face was scrunched up like he was trying to hold something back. 

 _That can't be right._ He thought. He figured he had only misheard Link. There was no way he'd be gone for two weeks right? Surely he had said two week _days_ or.. or something. He should be back; he should be here by now. That can't be right. Two weeks with Link gone? That's...that's-

Rhett's grip in his own hair tightened as Jason's words rung his head like poison. _"Two weeks."_ Part of his brain was forcing him to accept the reality and the other half fought to reject it. That part was losing.

His grip tightened again and he let out scream in an attempt to regain control over himself. His eyes finally opened for him to see the ceiling. He stayed in the same position for a moment with his eyes bulging and his chest heaving with deep breaths. 

He calmed himself down enough to blink once and look back at Jason, whose eyes were also wide open. Rhett realized how insane he must have looked. He slowly pulled his hands out from his hair and let them linger on his face as he rubbed his eyes with his fingertips. He let his arms fall to the floor to help push himself up then scanned the room to see everyone staring at him. He ran his fingers through his hair trying to concentrate on anything other than breathing hard enough in futile attempt to stop his heart from pounding. Finally he spoke in a shaky voice "I-...I need to be alone.."

 


	4. Bargaining

Rhett sat at his desk with his long legs folded up to his chest. He rested his head on his knees and closed his eyes. He felt like he could cry. He never wanted to feel so out of control and vulnerable in his own body again. A shudder ran through his body at the remembrance of the pain that was surging through it moments ago.

He lifted his head to look at the open message on his phone with Link.

- _Hey man, got a minute_?

No response.

He started at the phone as if he could mind will a response from Link who was miles away. He didn't look away when Jason appeared in the doorway.

"Rhett?" He spoke softly but Rhett stayed quiet. "Are you alright..?" He remained silent until Jason began to enter the room.

"I'm fine." He blurted quickly, still not look away from the phone.

"Do you..want to talk about what happened?"

"...No..."

"Are you sure?" Rhett didn't respond again. "Are you gonna be alright?"

"I said I'm fine." Rhett blurted again, becoming slightly impatient.

"You don't look fine."

Rhett suddenly became conscious the he looked like a teenage girl who had just been dumped. He sunk his head back down to rest on his knees.

"...Hey Jason?"

"Yeah Rhett?"

"...Will you do me a favor?"

"Anything."

"...Can you..can you not tell Link about..this. About what happened?"

"If that's what you want buddy."

Rhett wanted to thank him but he couldn't bring himself to form anymore words.

Jason must have left soon after that because when Rhett lifted his head again to check his phone, he was alone.

 

Day 5

 

Rhett sat in his car listening to the idling engine. He still hadn't heard from Link and it was starting to worry him.

He picked up his phone and opened the messages again. He saw the last one he sent, still unanswered.

- _C'mon brother I just want to talk.._

He meant to sound casual but realized it sounded more like a plea after he hit send. He returned his hands back to the wheel and his eyes forward. Then forced out a long breathe to help calm him down and eased his grip on the steering wheel once he realized how hard he was squeezing it.

"God Rhett, calm down." He whispered to himself. "Everything is fine. Link's fine...nothing's wrong.." It wasn't very reassuring as the entire drive to the studio he continuously played out various scenarios of why Link wouldn't have spoken to him for so long.

Once he was parked at the building he picked up his phone again and before he knew it he was dialing Link's number. What the hell was he doing? He hadn't planned anything to say.

_Hey this is Link. Uh, I must be doing something more important than talk to you since I didn't pick up. So, leave a message and I'll get back to ya._

Rhett's heart fluttered. It was first time he'd heard Link's voice in almost a week. He realized his eyes were starting  to water and he quickly wiped it away. God what had gotten into him? He also realized he was smiling when it clicked that he was on Link's voicemail and he actually had to say something.

"Uh, yeah, hey man. I just had this awesome GMM idea, so call me back when you get this so we can talk about it." Where the hell did that come from? His voice was so clear and natural. As if he hadn't just teared up at the sound of the other man's voice. He shrugged it off as being professional. He didn't realize until after he had unloaded himself from the car that now he had to come up with a good GMM idea.

\---------

The rest of the day consisted of Rhett sitting alone in the room and looking at his phone more times than he'd like to admit. He became more anxious when he remembered that Link never let his phone go to voicemail because he hated having to check it later.

Occasionally someone would pass by the door and stop by to check on Rhett and talk to him for a bit. He appreciated their concern even though he kept telling them all he was fine. He could practically see Link now sitting at his own desk and staring Rhett down, calling his bluff. Link always knew when something was wrong, and when he was lying. The man would be all over him for this. But at the moment it was the same man who was making him like this. Freakin catch 22.

Rhett stared at his phone and bounced leg viciously, trying to get out his nervous energy somehow.

- _How's vacation?_

Maybe he just needed to start a conversation. He thought. 

Thirty minutes passed by with no answer.

- _Just remember if anything goes wrong, you're still on vacation!_

He attempted a joke but it only made him more nervous that something bad could happen.

- _But if something bad does happen you should probably come back._

Well now it didn't sound like a joke at all.

- _haha_

Maybe that would make Link think it's still a joke.

Rhett ran a hand over his face. This was making him crazy.

Throughout the day Rhett sent Link eight more messages. All saying things similar to:

- _Hope everything is going okay_

- _Are the kids having fun?_

He was very careful to resist the urge to send anything along the lines of "I really miss you." Or "I wish I could see you." Even though that's all he really wanted to say and the rest was just to calm his nerves. Until he let one slip before he realized what he was typing.

- _It sure is quiet without you here.._

He didn't want Link to know how worried he was, or how much of a mess he was when he wasn't standing beside him. But it was too late, he found himself on the phone again, listening to Link's voicemail. He didn't even remember dialing his number.

"Hey, Link..I-.. I've been texting you but you haven't been responding...so, just checking to see if everything is alright. Kinda got me worried over here..just...just please call me back as soon as you get this. Alright, bye. Call me back..hope everything's okay.." His voice had broken on almost every word and he had forced himself to manage a fake laugh so he wouldn't sound as freaked out as he really was. He knew it was a failed attempt when he felt tears rolling down his cheeks.


	5. Anger

 

Day 6

 

Saturday. The weekend. It was finally here. Maybe now Rhett could relax. Maybe all he needed was to spend a little time at home and get his mind off of things. At least that's what Jessie said.

They both sat on the couch and Rhett had his legs folded up next to him and rest his head on his wife's shoulder. 

"Sweetie if something was wrong he would tell you." She reassured him in a soothing voice and idly petting his hair.

"But what if he _can't_ tell me."

"He'd find a way."

"Well why would he just ignore me?"

"He's probably busy."

"Too busy to call me? Or just send me a text?" The agitation in Rhett's voice was rising.

Jessie looked over at him, questioning.

"I'm just saying that he's never gone on vacation without keeping me updated daily-if not hourly. So what the hell is so important that he can't send a fucking text?!"

"Calm down.." She whispered as she continued to run her fingers through his hair, as she knew relaxed him.

He took a deep breath and looked down at his phone.

"...You know the longest amount of time that's gone by without us talking?" He didn't let her answer. "Five days and.." Rhett checked the time on his phone and did some quick math. "Seven hours."

Jessie didn't respond but only rest her head on top of Rhett's.

"Fuckin selfish.." Rhett tossed his phone to the other side of the couch where it bounced off the arm and landed on the floor.

\--------

The weekend flashed by at the agonizing speed of dirt.

He spent every hour he could with the boys hoping they would help clear his mind. But instead he found himself yelling and fussing at them more than usual. He also found himself thinking _what the hell is wrong with me?_ a lot more.

After they had all eaten supper he went outside for some fresh air. He sat on the back porch and stared at the blank screen of his phone.

A thought from the back of his mind pushed its way into consciousness. What if Link had gotten his messages? What if he and Christy were reading them and laughing together? What if they were both replaying his voicemails and laughing every time his voice broke? What if they were making bets on how many texts he'd send before the two weeks were over?

The small rational part of his brain that was still working knew that it was completely irrational and neither Link nor Christy would ever do such a thing. But since the majority of his mind had already dove off the deep end, he believed it.

The thought of his friend mocking his misery made him begin to grit his teeth. His jaw set tight and locked in place and his fingers curled tightly around the small electronic in his large hands. He could feel his body threatening to succumb to his thoughts and send him spiraling into another fit. His jaw locked tighter and his eyes squeezed shut. He refused. He wasn't going to break down at his own house, in front of his family.

"What the fuck is your problem?" He growled through his teeth. He wasn't quite sure who he was talking to or what exactly he meant by it but he knew they were the only words filling his head.  

He forced his eyes open against the pain searing in his mind. He saw his fingers red curled around his phone and his hands shaking. He felt his body giving in and he kept his focus on his hand in hopes that it would keep him in control.

"Sweetie?" Jessie's voice came from behind in a hushed toned and sent him rushing back to reality. He took a sharp intake of breath to refill the one he hasn't realized he was holding in. Which then sent him into a small coughing fit.

"Are you alright?" She lightly placed a cautious hand on his shoulder.

Rhett places his phone down beside him and buried his face in his hands, rubbing his eyes with his fingertips.

"The boys are going to bed.." 

Rhett pulled his hands down enough to look over his fingers. He hadn't realized how dark it had gotten. He couldn't keep letting time escape him like this.

Jessie's hand began to snake away until Rhett gently grabbed it with his own. He lay his head on their hands in silence. Jessie complied to his unspoken plea to stay and sat beside him. She placed her free hand on his other cheek and lightly stroked the hairs at his temple.

"I'm losing control over myself Jess.."

"You just need some sleep." 

"...Yeah, alright.."

Jessie took his hand and walked with him to the bedroom. Despite his best efforts, Rhett only slept a few hours that night.

 

Day 8

 

In the main room of the studio Rhett lie on his back on the couch and stared up at the ceiling, grinding his teeth. His phone sat face down on the opposite side of the table. He couldn't stand to hold it any more. 

"Still haven't heard from Link?" Jason asked from the other end of the couch.

Rhett didn't break his stare with the ceiling before growling "Screw Link."

"So..no then."

Rhett sat up and grabbed his phone across the table. 

"Do you know how many times I've _tried_ to text him?"

"I don't-"

"Too damn many!" His yelled echoed throughout the room causing everyone to freeze. Rhett would never curse on camera, but it was still rare for him to do it at all.

"You know what else I've _tried_?" Irritation rose in Rhett's voice. "Calling, voicemails, emails, _skype_ and the bastard still won't answer his _damn phone!_ " Rhett swung his arm back and launched his phone across the room for it to smash and shatter against the wall. " **You selfish asshole**!" Again the words came out without him knowing if he was directing them towards Link or himself.

Rhett sunk down to the same position he had been in close to a week ago. With all his balance on the balls of his feet and his hands in his hair. His head was pounding and he could feel his temperature rising. He felt like he was being pulled apart at the seams and he couldn't stop it. His entire body was screaming stop but his mind kept pushing. He couldn't understand what was happening or why he couldn't stop it, all he could do was suffer. What was happening? Why couldn't he control himself? Why couldn't he _stop_?

Finally Rhett pulled a loud throaty scream from the pit of his stomach, and everything went dark.


	6. Depression

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone that's been commenting and even leaving kudos and bookmarking this, you guys really give me a power kick to get going again!  
> (by the way this chapter is quite a bit longer than the others)

Rhett woke up covered in sweat and confusion. When he turned his head to examine his surroundings he felt a cool rag on his forehead, and then the splitting headache it was covering. He have a weak groan to the pain before he noticed Jessie kneeling on the floor beside the couch and changing the rag on his forehead. 

"Wh-"

"You're at home." She answered before he got the chance to ask. "Jason called me. You were unconscious and your temperature was through the roof."

"What..happened?"

Jessie shifted to look him in the eyes.

"You had a severe anxiety attack."

"Anxiety-? No. No I don't get anxious. Not enough to flip out." 

"You did."

"No..must have been something else. I don't get anxious.." Rhett paused, looking back up to the ceiling before continuing his thought. "Link gets anxious."

"That's your problem."

Rhett turned to her with a confused look, inquiring her to explain.

"You've been thinking about Link and what's going on with him so much you're doing this to yourself."

"I'm just...worried about my friend. My best friend."

"And you got so worked up about it you couldn't control yourself and you had a panic attack."

Rhett fell silent. He knew she was right. He must have been acting like a complete asshole the past week.

"You also completely busted your phone."

Rhett buried his face in his palm. 

"What do I do now?"

"Just relax." she smiled. "Take some time off and stay home. It'll be okay."

Rhett was quiet again as he tried to remember the past week and everything he had done.

"I'll start supper, you just rest."

"Alright.." Rhett rolled over on the couch, suddenly not feeling up to moving to the bed.

 

Day 9

 

Rhett woke to the small noise from his laptop of his email pinging in a new message. There were a handful of new messages all wishing him to feel better. He had sent out an email the night before telling everyone that they were on break until Link came back home. They all obviously understood why, but he still felt guilty. They had so much more work to do. Work that he promised Link would be done when he came back home. Rhett ran his hands over his face as he contemplated all the different excuses he could come up with as to why they weren't done.

Telling the truth that he had a break down and sent everyone home was not an option. He told Link a lot of things, but admitting to him that spending a little over a week apart made him have a meltdown, was not something he planned to do.

Maybe he could tell Link there was a power outage. Or he could tell him that they couldn't do the work without him. A good ego boost like that was likely to raise less questions. Rhett nodded to himself, that would be the plan then.

He absentmindedly reached for his phone on the bedside table before he realized it wasn't there.

"Right.." He breathed out, making a mental note to get another phone.

He sat up and stretched out his arms with a small noise in his throat. He looked over his shoulder to see if Jessie was still asleep, but she wasn't there.

With a look of mixed with sleep and confusion, he staggered into the living room to see the clock. 12pm on the dot. 

"Lunch?" He groaned, questioning if the clock was actually right. Then he noticed a note on the fridge.

 

_Took the boys to the park,_

_Be back for lunch._

 

"Lunch..." He repeated to himself in a bit more coherent tone. He opened the fridge to search for some food at about the same time he heard the front door open and two pairs of feet stampede into the room.

"Did you just wake up?" Jessie asked entering the room.

Rhett was a little put off by the question. Of course he had just woken up. What was the alternative? He'd been awake but decided to re-dress himself and dishevel his hair? Or that he'd been awake for hours and just decided not to put on clothes?

"Yeah?"

"Were you tired?" She chuckled.

"I feel like I was supposed to sleep another three hours." Rhett retorted in a bit of a snappy tone. "Sorry.." He murmured as soon as he heard himself and saw the look on Jessie's face.

"It's..fine. You're just stressed." Her calming voice came with a smile which eased him in return. The sudden wave of ease made him realize how tense and irritated he was previously. He wasn't one to be quickly irritated so what was with the sudden spike now?

Locke's voice broke his thoughts "Dad are you gonna come back to the park with us?"

"Huh?"

"You're coming back to the park with us?" Shepard repeated.

"Oh, n-no boys," Rhett squat down and ruffled their hair in his hands. "I gotta go get a new phone today."

"But mama said you would go to the park with us!" Shepard whined as he tugged on this fathers wrist. Rhett looked up at Jessie.

"I said might. I just thought you needed a break, to be out in the sun...you can get another phone tomorrow."

Rhett looked down at his two boys giving him pleading eyes.

Before he knew it Rhett was at the park. He lie on his back on the seat of a park bench. His broad shoulders drooped over the edges and his long legs branched off the sides before they could reach the end. His hands clasped together on his stomach and he looked up to the sky to watch the clouds pass by.

He couldn't help but think about when he and Link would lie in the field and watch the clouds every summer. They hadn't done that in a while. What if they never did again? What if he never had another chance to lie on the grass and watch time pass by with his best friend? What if Link decided not to come back to LA? What if he couldn't come back?

What if he was trying to get in touch with him right now? 

Why'd he have to break his phone? What if there was a emergency right now?

Rhett turned his head to watch Locke and Shepard in hopes they would distract him from his own thoughts.

Locke ran around shooting nerf darts at trees, the sky and his little brother. And Shepard ran by his side pointing out new things to be shot.

What if Link had been shot?

The thought was enough to make Rhett sit up and let his head fall into his hands with his elbows on his knees.

"Are you alright?" Jessie's voice came alarmed from the other side of the table, Rhett had forgot she was there. In fact his maelstrom of thoughts had caused him to forget where he was completely.

When he began to speak his hand quickly covered his mouth. He suddenly felt like he was going to vomit. He couldn't get the image of Link holding a bloody hand over a gunshot wound with tears streaming down his face and him screaming in agony.

 _Oh God, it's not real._ He tried to tell himself, but he couldn't hear his rationalities through Link's screams. 

_Damn it get a hold of yourself!_

"Rhett, sweetie?" 

Rhett turned to his wife to see her leaning across the table to place her hand on his shoulder. He suddenly became aware that he could hear his heart pounding.

"Do you want to go inside?"

He vigorously rubbed a hand over his face as if he could simply pull the thought out of his mind.

"Y-yeah..I-...I need to-uh..." His words stumbled out of his mouth before completely forming and his head felt light once he stood. God he felt like he was going to fall over and pass out.

"You go lay down, I'll bring the boys in in a minute." Jessie was standing now, holding a cautious hand on Rhett's arm so he wouldn't fall over.

"Y'all stay out here.." He protested weakly.

"You sure?"

He only gave a grunt in response as he wavered back into the house and crashed onto the couch. Link continued to wail in the back of his mind.

\------------

Rhett lay in bed in the dark, the sun long since set. He stared at the wall, somewhat expecting it to help him sleep. Jessie had dozed off beside him and the boys had also fallen asleep hours ago. But he lay awake in the near silence, only broken by the insects chirping outside.

He had no idea what time it was, but he knew he was supposed to be asleep and that he couldn't stay asleep. He knew soon sleep would drift back to him and be snatched away crudely before he could enjoy it.

He lay still in the dark when he heard a noise. It was a sharp yet deep sound, puncturing. A gunshot? He heard another noise, a scream. Or more accurately a yelp.

Rhett could feel he heart begin to pins in his throat. What was going on? Was someone shot? There was no way of telling, it was completely pitch black in the room. He couldn't even tell if his eyes were open or closed.

"Oh gosh.." A familiar and quiet whine poured out from the dark. "Oh man it's everywhere.."

Rhett began to see a glimmer of a red puddle on the floor.

"Help!" The voice shouted. They sounded in pain. "Somebody please help!" 

Rhett took a step closer. He knew that voice..

"Is anybody there? Please I'm..I'm bleeding!"

A dim light illuminated the voice's source. Link. Link was sprawled on the floor, propped up with his arm and holding his side with the other. The hand on his side was drenched in red. Rhett felt something catch in his throat.

"Someone please!" His pleas were becoming more desperate and tears were beginning to well up in his eyes. Those watery eyes met Rhett's.

"Rhett!"

 _Link, what happened to you?_ The words wouldn't come out.

"Rhett, you..you gotta help me man."

 _Link.._ Rhett began to walk towards his hurt friend, but he didn't seem to be getting any closer.

"Please man.." Link sounded like he was obviously trying to keep his cool, but he was losing it quickly. "Rhett please!" He cried out as he held his side tighter. Tears began streaming down his cheeks and his voice was on the edge of hysteria. 

Rhett tried to move faster but the short distance between them didn't seem to close.

"Rhett! God, help me! Rhett!"

Rhett felt his tears pour down his face. 

_Link.._

"Rhett just help me! Just help! _Please!_ Help me!" His voice was starting to change, a mix of desperation and anger. As if he thought Rhett was purposely staying away.

 _Link..._ He wanted to tell him, why couldn't he speak? _Link...Link...Link..._

"Link!" Rhett sat up straight in a cold sweat. He could feel his heart beating out of chest as he panted in attempt to catch his breath. He looked to his side to see Jessie still sleeping, then glanced over to where he had seen Link bleeding out. He flopped back down onto his pillow once he got his breath back.

_Damn vivid dreams.._

Rhett never got back to sleep that night.

 

Day 10

 

In the morning Rhett told Jessie about how he had thought about Link being shot and his dream. Jessie diagnosed it as him being paranoid about Link trying to get in contact with him when he couldn't respond. He already knew that. He already knew that he missed Link and was thinking all these horrible things that could happen that he had no control over. It was killing him.

Eventually Rhett got irritated and left, announcing that he was going to get a new phone.

Once all the setting up was done Rhett turned and pulled out of the parking lot after realizing he'd been sitting there for an unacceptably long time. Instead of going home he took a turn to the studio. Maybe he could get some last minute work done and get everything off his mind. It should be fairly easy since the building would be empty. No distractions. 

He stepped into the lifeless building and made his way to his and Link's work room. He flicked on the light and set his things down on his desk. He stared at his chair that was pulled out and facing him at the door from the last time he got up. He kept it that way for easy access. Then he glanced over to Link's desk where his chair was neatly tucked underneath. Without giving it any other thought he grabbed his laptop and moved to sit at Link's desk.

He began work, though he wasn't very successful. His thoughts continued to trail off and he couldn't seem to stay focused on what he was doing for the life of him. The already sporadic clicking sounds from the keyboard slowly faded to nothing and Rhett was once again engulfed by the hum of silence. But it seemed different this time. It seemed thicker, louder. Like it was mocking him. How could this seemingly peaceful ring be so torturous to him now? Was it not the same sound that soothed him to sleep so recently? How could that simple chime make everything seem so hollow now?

Rhett picked up his phone and stared at the blank screen. Surely Enough time had passed in his vacation for Link to talk to him now right? Surely it has. Any minute now his phone would buzz and light up Link's name. Surely.

The persistent ring of silence continued to fill the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I took so long getting this up. I've been having trouble focusing myself..  
> Also sorry if it seems a bit jumpy, losing focus makes me lose a bit of motivation ^.^'
> 
> Thanks again for all the support, it's almost over!


	7. Link's Return

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh man, last chapter guys!  
> It's a lot shorter than the other ones, sorry..

Day 14

 

Rhett sat on his porch staring down at his feet. He hadn't gotten any sleep the night before, and hardly a few hours the night before that. He's gotten out of bed earlier than usual purely because he couldn't stand lying there any longer. He got dressed and fixed his hair, though he accidentally used the new gel that hated his hair. He gave a sound of annoyance as he stared at it in the mirror before decided he didn't care and it was probably all in his head anyways. No one would notice.

He didn't want to risk waking up Locke and Shepard with the tv so he went outside and watched the sun rise. He continued to watch as the sun rose higher in the sky. Once the sky was no longer painted in a mix of pinks and oranges and the sun had reached the tree tops, Jessie stepped outside.

"I promised Christy when they came back we'd be there to help them unpack."

Rhett lifted his gaze to meet his wife's. She held their stare for a moment before looking over to the sun climbing the trees.

"She said they should be back before noon." she looked back at Rhett, who hadn't looked away.

"You remembered they're coming back today right..?"

Rhett's eyes widened for a moment as the realization sank in. He snatched up his phone, mindlessly checked the time and headed for the car. 

"Get the boys."

"Y-you want to leave right now?" She knew he'd want to leave as soon as she brought it up but his sudden movement still startled her.

"They could be here right now Jess! They're probably on the road back right now! We gotta go!" The anxious tone in Rhett's voice worried her but his evident excitement still made her smile.

With the boys also excited about their return, it didn't take long for them all to get settled in the car at hit the road. However once they arrived at Link and Christy's house before Link and Christy, their excitement began to quickly deplete.

"This is boring.." Locke groaned.

"Boring.." Echoed Shepard.

"When are they gonna be here?"

"I don't know Locke." Rhett attempted to not sound frustrated. The same question was buzzing around his own mind.

"You don't think they'd mind if we went in and let the boys watch some tv do you?" 

"Nah Link won't mind.." Rhett almost muttered as he dug into his pockets and pulled out his spare key and handed it over to Jessie.

"You boys wanna watch some tv?" She asked in an enthusiastic tone.

They agreed in unison and eagerly ran into the house leaving Rhett alone on the porch. He stared at his phone in his hands and watched the time pass by as he anxiously bounced his knee.

After he spent nearly two hours of watching the numbers change on his phone and occasionally glancing down the road, Rhett sighed in an almost defeated way. He placed his phone down beside him and dropped his head down, holding his hands behind his neck.

"Where are you.." He murmured to himself, only to be answered by a series of honks coming from the end of the driveway. Rhett popped his head up to see Link's van pulling in.

Rhett stood Jessie came back out with the boys running out in front of her. Once the van stopped Locke ripped the door open and Lincoln came bounding out. Jessie made her way over to greet Christy. Rhett didn't move until he saw Link step out. He let out a shaky breath that he hadn't realized he was holding as he watched Link lean into the car to help Lando out of his car seat. As he approached him, Link was heaving Lando out and let him run to the house. Link turned with a big toothy grin. 

"Hey man! Did'ja miss me?" He asked with a bit of a bounce, obviously ecstatic to see his friend again.  

Without a word Rhett took another step forward and threw his arms around his best friend.

"Oh- H-hey..man." Link stuttered. He wasn't expecting that at all.

Jessie nudged Christy and gestured towards the two men. They both smiled endearingly before Jessie leaned in to whisper so only Christy could hear. 

"He's been at the end of his rope since ya'll left. Doesn't know what to do without him." She chuckled a bit and so did Christy.

"You should've seen Link." 

Jessie gave a look that begged her to continue.

"I- uh guess that's a yes?" Link asked awkwardly.

Rhett stayed silent with his head resting on his own arm. Link gave in and not knowing what else to do with his arms he clasped them around his friend. "I missed you too.." He said softly.

Suddenly one of Rhett's arms moved from Link's back and into his back pocket. He broke the embrace and held up Link's phone for him to see. Link gave a confused look.

"You know what this is?" It was just barely a question asked in a voice that was only reserved for when someone did something awfully wrong.

"My....phone..?" Link answered slowly, despite knowing for sure it was his phone he felt there had to be more. He also noticed Rhett's eyes were red and shiny now. Was he about to cry?

"What do you use a phone for?"

"Ca...calling..people..?"

"Oh, so you _do_ know what it's for!"

"What are you getting at Rhett?"

"Why the He-" Rhett bit his tongue due to all the kids running around. "Why didn't you ever pick up your phone?"

"Because it was off." Link snatched his phone from Rhett. And started to turn it on. "I told you we were having a screen free vacation. No phones on, no tv, no games. We watched a few movies but that's about it."

Rhett felt a sinking feeling.

"Wh..when did you tell me that?"

"Before I left! At the studio. I have you the hotel number and told you to call that if you had to."

Rhett felt his heart sink more mixed with a panic, his eyes shot over to Link's phone which immediately started buzzing. 

Link watched as the screen flooded with notifications of new messages, new voicemails, missed calls, missed skype calls, and new skype messages. A sudden pang of guilt filled Link's heart.

Without doing anything more than looking at Rhett's face he could tell all the pain he'd put him through.

"Rhett.."

"Don't- listen, it's fine. I'm fine. Don't worry about it, really."

Link stood planted where he was and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. He would've hugged him again but he knew Rhett wasn't the kind of guy to hug someone twice in a minute. Instead he looked up at his friend in hopes to meet his eyes to give comfort that way, by Rhett was fixated on the ground. Link raised an eyebrow slightly when he realized something.

"Did you use a different hair gel?"

Rhett smiles to himself before lookong up to meet Link's eyes. "Yeah.." Of course Link would notice.

Link smiled at the conformation and quickly spat out the next think he could think of before they fell into silence again.

"You really should listen to me more.." Link muttered with an awkward smile and earned a chuckle from Rhett.

"Just do me one favor?"

"Yeah?" 

"Don't listen to those voicemails."

Link smiled and breathed out a laugh.

"We'll see."

They all spent the next few minutes unloading the van and settling back in. Christy insisted they stayed for supper which Rhett was fine with, he had a lot of time to catch up with Link. The two seemed to be constantly laughing and talking. Rhett continued to ask questions about his two weeks and Link was careful not to do the same.

Throughout the week Rhett was clamped to Link's side more than usual and made sure to pay extra attention every time he spoke. Link enjoyed the extra attention, but his time in the spotlight didn't last long. Just the next week he had to re-explain his GMM idea to Rhett three times before he finally heard all of it. And everything was back to normal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for all the support! ;A; It really, really means a lot to me, you have no idea. Honestly. Every comment makes me smile and get all flustered like an idiot.  
> There were a few things that I didn't get to put in there but oh well. Weren't that important I guess.  
> Anyways, I hope you all liked this and weren't disappointed by anything! And I do plan to do a few more Rhett & Link stories. (I have a few ideas stocked heh heh)  
> Hope to see you guys there when they come out!


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